Indigenous Methods as

Positive Transformation:
A Jeepney Example
A Study on the Semiotic Approach to the
Information Design for Cebu City’s Jeepney System
Cherisse Sia & Glen Martin Green, PhD

THE TRANSFORMATION OF offer several advantages: 1) they cost less to oper- Jeepneys operate 24/7, with each one following a
INDIGENOUS PRACTICES INTO ate, 2) they are adapted to local conditions, 3) they specific designated route. There are currently 118
require less fossil fuels, 4) they are more resilient jeepney routes in Cebu City (CCTO, 2015) and it
WESTERN STYLE PROGRESS
to failure, 5) they require less capital investments, would be confusing and difficult to memorize all
The conversion of many indigenous Filipino
and 6) they promote and enhance local social of these courses, which means that a commuter
practices, technologies and concepts during the
capital. looking to reach an unfamiliar destination must
last several decades to Western ones has led to
take the effort of asking people for directions.
unprecedented levels of economic growth (GDP).
Yet to retain the advantages of indigenous meth-
The Philippine’s economy, as given by the param-
ods may require a change of Filipino mind-set, and The most common way to learn of a jeepney’s
eter GDP, is now growing faster than any nation
a process to legitimize indigenous methods once course is to check its exterior area where its routes
on Earth at more than 6% per year, growing even
again to the Filipino. are usually displayed at the side or front of the
faster than China, the reigning economic leader of
vehicle. This can be highly inconvenient for com-
the last 15 years.
AN INDIGENOUS METHOD: muters because they must grasp information from
THE JEEPNEY a moving vehicle. The Philippines, with a popula-
Yet not all the aspects of “Western Style Progress”
In Cebu City, public utility jeepneys (PUJ) are one tion of 100 million people, has the fastest rate of
of the last decade, both foreign and domestic,
of the most utilized means of public transportation urbanization in East Asia (NSO, 2014). Because of
can be viewed positively. Scientists fault global
because these are the cheapest ways to commute the increasing level of urbanization, there has been
warming induced by accumulating atmospher-
and local buses that operate within the city are a corresponding shi# in the preferred mode of
ic greenhouse gases (chiefly CO2) produced by
few. It is important to make route information transportation from public to private. The demand
burning fossil fuels. Air pollution, crime, and lack of
readily available to commuters in order to help for travel using private vehicles is expected to
affordable transport hinder urban dwellers but the
maximize the efficiency of the existing public increase by 23.5% (989,910) by 2020 (Patdu,
high cost of subdivision houses and private auto-
transportation system in Cebu. However, there is 2009).
mobiles hinder these alternatives. This conversion
of indigenous to Western has exacerbated nu- no singular source of travelling information
merous urban problems, such as 1) growing traffic conveniently available to learn how to commute INFORMATION DESIGN BASED ON
congestion and associated air pollution, 2) periodic within Cebu. Swindlers and scammers may take SEMIOTIC THEORY
flooding events and water shortages, 3) widespread advantage of a first time travellers’ unfamiliarity, The Semiotic Theory is defined as the theory of
pollution of urban rivers, streams and canals, 4) and the lack of reliable and readily accessible pub- signs, symbols and its various meanings. According
loss of attractive and comfortable public spaces, lic transit information in Cebu. Thus, the research- to Hall (2012), the word “Semiotics” came from
5) increased levels of urban crime and social alien- ers propose a graphic information support system the Greek word semeiotikos, which means an
ation. Thus, the growing urban problems prompt for Cebu City’s jeepney routes. “interpreter of signs”. When a designer is working
a call for a reassessment of a strictly uncritical towards producing a piece of work, a series of
adoption of modern Western methods and ideals, Cebu City is the second largest city in the Philip- visual tests or design experiments are useful in
as well as a reappraisal of pre-Western indigenous pines with a population of 866,171 people (PSA, gathering feedback. In order to test the efficiency
methods. Retaining certain 2013) in a metropolitan area of approximately two and effectiveness of the study’s design to visually
indigenous Filipino million inhabitants. According to LTFRB, communicate to the commuting public, both qual-
methods as of 2014, there are 5,185 itative and quantitative measures were considered,
may registered jeepney warranting a mixed method research in which
units with most the paradigms of a qualitative and quantitative
routes in research were combined.
Cebu
City. THE RESPONDENTS
The research respondents were ultimately the
commuting public in the city, composed of those
who utilize and ride jeepneys everyday to commute.
They were classified in two categories. The first
category was composed of commuters in Cebu
City. Simple random sampling method was applied
to determine the sample and 123 commuters in
Cebu City were randomly surveyed for the study.
Included were travellers, elderly persons, stu-
dents, the working class and low-income peo-
ple. The second category used the purposive
or judgmental sampling to determine the
respondents. This category was composed
of professionals in the design industry
and related fields that possess the suf-
ficient knowledge and experience to aid
and supplement the data and informa-
tion in the study. Included were design
professionals and some government
 the signage prototype and print materials, 2) visi- regulations (utilizing the popular jeepney stops
bility, 3) design layout and 4) the possibility of the that the drivers, dispatchers and the locals only
design to be implemented in the real world. mentally know and assigning these stops as formal
FINAL DESIGN OUTPUT AND KEY jeepney stops in every jeepney route). Based on the
FINDINGS initial research and findings, wayfinding signages
In answer to the design challenge of the study, the was determined as the most effective medium
Semiotic Theory was applied in the creative design to concretize the study’s output of standardized
process. The triadic relationship between a sign, its public transit information. To expand the branding
meanings and the viewing audience is the core of and use of the system in the future, a website and
the theory in terms of visual communication. The mobile application were also determined to be
study acknowledged the gravity of the role of the useful digital platforms of the brand. A graphics
target users towards a better visual understanding standards manual was also created to standardize
of the design and thus, made sure the entirety of the design.
officials. the created information design was user-centric.
Furthermore, in understanding the arbitrary rela- CONCLUSION
The study’s tionship between signs – their tendency to become 1) Providing transit information to commuters
respondents symbolic in nature, if the said system would be could change commuting behavioural patterns and
were determined implemented, the presence of it in society could increase the utilization of public transportation in
based on each of possibly change behavioral patterns of commuters the locality. As a result, the proper regulation of
the group’s power to in Cebu City. Appropriate signage may induce the jeepney stops at designated areas along a jeepney
influence and impact a jeepney drivers to follow traffic regulations better, route could enormously reduce traffic and pro-
community. The commut- such as stopping on designated jeepney stops mote harmony on the road. Furthermore, jeepney
ing public, which consists with proper signs rather than stopping anywhere to drivers do not need to stop anywhere on the road
of 123 respondents and working unload or load passengers. anymore; practices that obstruct the roadway and
professionals, were categorized as cause traffic.
people having a high importance but low The Semiotic principles mentioned in the the-
influence in the community. The government oretical background were determined to be the 2) The Semiotic Theory helps the graphic designer
officials were categorized as people having a high most helpful in terms of the creative aspect of the prepare a useful creative strategy which can be
importance and high influence in the community. design namely; conceptualization of the wayfinding applied in a design or artwork. Furthermore, con-
system, art direction, design details and creation sidering the culture and local perspective of a place
THE RESEARCH PHASES of the graphic elements. Using the process of en- are very important factors to assure a design is
In the pre-design phase, survey questionnaires coding and decoding meaning, the researcher was more impactful and meaningful.
were handed out to 123 respondents in the vicinity able to design the visual communicative strategies
of the Colon and Talamban area in random in Cebu and organize the graphic elements to secure that 3) Foreigners and travellers opt to ride other means
City. The survey questionnaires had two parts. the intended message of the artwork was easily of transportation because they find a hard time
The first part was designed to collect quantitative understood. Additionally, one is able to give impor- learning the main public transit network in Cebu
commuter behavior data and the second part was tance to culture or social factors as a significant because it is cluttered and not systemized.
designed to obtain qualitative insights on how influencer of meaning, thus resulted to the careful
receptive the target users would be in terms of cra#ing of the graphic information system in such
wayfinding and public signage. Expert interviews a way that it serves the target users in
were conducted to gather professional insights, a much more meaningful way –
information and necessary data that can supple- taking into consideration
ment and validate findings from the survey. The how commuting works
in-depth research and analysis of the Semiotic in thepresent rather
Theory was also a major factor in the creative pro- than what has
cess of the design. The key principles of Semiotics been provided
were adapted in making the design elements of by the local
the artwork and in terms of encoding the intended govern-
message of each of the design elements and the ment
design as a whole. as

A#er gathering the findings of the pre-design

phase, initial prototype designs were created. The
post-design phase obtained results through a
focus group discussion (FGD). The respondents
were chosen in such a way that each of them
would represent a fraction of the target users; a
teenager, a young adult and three adults con-
sisting of one who has lived in Cebu City for a
long time and is already adept in commuting
around Cebu City, one who has lived in Cebu
City for just a short span of time and one who
is a foreigner.

The purpose of the FGD was to evaluate the

usability and effectiveness of the proposed
design to communicate to the general public.
The discussion covered five sections namely:
1) graphic illustration of route information and
map, 2) commuter behavior and preferences, 3)
color coordination, 4) legibility of information,
and 5) semiotic analysis of the design elements
(decoding meaning and personal interpretation).
The findings of the FGD were used to evaluate 1)
comprehension and communication efficiency with

The signages should be situated from point A to point B of a

jeepney route. The main signage contains the route map and
directory with designated official jeepney stops. The secondary
signage contains the next designated stop of a jeepney based
on the main signage it is connected to.
Logo Concept

Proposed branding for

Cebu City’s jeepney system:
Cebu City Transit Guide
(CCTG)

Route Map Concept

The art direction of the graphic
elements is that of a puso or
hanging rice, common in the
localilty of Cebu. Just like wayfinding, mak-
ing a puso involves the proper knowledge
to weave two strands of lukay together.

Yellow and black were the

chosen signature colors of the brand be-
cause it is the color combination signifying
pedestrians and it is the most visible color
to the eye, making the signages more visi-
ble and recognizable while commuting.

Map
Map Design
DesignsSamples

Other Designs

PROPOSED BRANDING AND GRAPHIC INFORMATION SYSTEM

FOR CEBU CITY’S PUBLIC TRANSIT SYSTEM